Support for detained Fatih Altaylı from Cüneyt Özdemir: I have a friendly and sincere request

Journalist Cüneyt Özdemir, sharing a post on his social media account, expressed his support for Fatih Altaylı, who was taken into custody.

Özdemir said, "We know that the reason for Fatih Altaylı's detention is not just this issue, but his recent harsh criticisms of the government. When the wolf decides to eat the lamb, a 36-second distorted text can be enough," he said.

Here are some statements from Cüneyt Özdemir's post:

"The offense for which Fatih Altaylı was detained does not even carry a prison sentence. Therefore, I have a friendly and sincere request for those who made this decision. Release Fatih Altaylı. Fatih Altaylı is a journalist. And journalism is not a crime.

"I HAVE A CALL TO THOSE WHO GOVERN THE GOVERNMENT AND THOSE WHO MADE THIS DECISION"

Right now, trolls are celebrating Fatih Altaylı's detention, but I still have a call to those who govern the government and those who made this decision, who still think with common sense.

'Let the opposition make its voice heard, whether you like it or not. You can silence every voice you don't like, but history shows that this is not a sustainable method in the long run."

HERE ARE THOSE LINES FROM ÖZDEMİR:

"I don't remember how many years it has been since I met Fatih Altaylı. I remember the years when he commented on newspapers on a radio station. I think it was the early 90s. Was it called Bab-ı Ali hill? He would read the newspapers every day and criticize them mercilessly... It was a very popular radio program. Those were the days when radio and television were just taking off. I remember we met during the Kardak crisis. In Gümüşlük... He had even jumped on a boat and gone to Kardak, and his wife Hande was with him... In later years, when I was at Cnntürk, he was on the KanalD side at Doğan Holding. We would run into each other occasionally... In later years, we started meeting as families. We were together on vacations, we visited each other's homes. Fatih makes very good goose, look... During a period when he was in a lot of trouble at Habertürk, I invited him as a guest to 5n1k. They still use that program to hit us below the belt. We had a very sincere and direct debate. We went at each other as two journalists who wouldn't say 'okay' to anything. (I got into a lot of trouble at Doğan TV after that program, maybe he will learn this here for the first time, I never told him..)

I don't know what happened after that, we started seeing each other less. We disagreed on many issues. When I joined YouTube, he looked down on me as a 'youtuber', then that dire thing called circumstances brought him to the YouTube adventure as well. Fatih was very successful on YouTube.

He surpassed all of us in viewership.

In this newly established world, he made broadcasts that had a much greater impact than what the opposition did. I know that what he said was not easy to swallow, especially for the government side. We met at a venue just a few months ago. We talked a bit about the current situation, he was in good spirits. He was uneasy, but he was not afraid.

I learned this evening that he was detained. It was a situation we all expected, unfortunately... This is a possible scenario not just for journalists, but for every social media user in Turkey now...

The speech Fatih made in his last broadcast has been shortened and edited, turned into a huge distortion and misunderstanding. When you listen to the original of the approximately 3-minute speech, you see that it is not a speech that deserves to be detained so abruptly..

But the 36-second section that was edited is a complete manipulation.

We know that the reason for Fatih Altaylı's detention is not just this issue, but his recent harsh criticisms of the government.

When the wolf decides to eat the lamb, a 36-second distorted text can be enough.

Fatih's abrupt detention on a Saturday afternoon is beyond any strange detention ritual we have seen so far...

Today, I see YouTube broadcasters as the pressure cookers of democracy. You know, where you apply too much pressure, you need to release some of the steam from the pot. Right now, trolls are celebrating Fatih Altaylı's detention, but I still have a call to those who govern the government and those who made this decision, who still think with common sense.

'Let the opposition make its voice heard, whether you like it or not. You can silence every voice you don't like, but history shows that this is not a sustainable method in the long run. Not just in Turkey, nowhere. In a period where the peace process is being experienced, where closed countries in the Middle East are collapsing and being dragged into war, what we need most is pluralism, democracy, and the rule of law.

The offense for which Fatih Altaylı was detained does not even carry a prison sentence. Therefore, I have a friendly and sincere request for those who made this decision.

Release Fatih Altaylı.

Fatih Altaylı is a journalist.

and journalism is not a crime."

I don't remember how many years it has been since I met Fatih Altaylı. I remember the years when he commented on newspapers on a radio station. I think it was the early 90s. Was it called Bab-ı Ali hill? He would read the newspapers every day and criticize them mercilessly... It was a very popular radio program. Radio and…

— cüneyt özdemir (@cuneytozdemir) June 21, 2025